Micro 10 C's Kit Testing: Wire Saw

Micro 10 C's Kit Testing: Wire Saw

Don't Miss the other Micro 10 C's Testing Posts:  (Pocket 10 C's Kit; Gorilla Tape Tinder Bundle-LINK; Gorilla Tape Container- LINK; Gorilla Tape Cordage-LINK; Produce Water Bag- LINK).

So in preparation for my upcoming Micro 10 C'S Kit field test I have been testing some of the contents for ease of use and durability and today I tackle the divisive wire/commando saw and determine how it would work out in a survival situation. First and foremost, I didn't buy this it came with one of several kits and I have a ton of them laying around. While most people absolutely hate these tiny little saws as they tend to break quickly. I honestly believe this is due to an improper use of the saw. While the saw's packaging shows the saw put into action at very steep bends around limbs and that is when the saw fails the most often (unfortunately that is also how it works the best), so from the onset I knew I was going to make this saw into a bow style saw to minimize the stress on the wire. So to get all of this started here is a quick video I took of my buddy Jeremy putting the saw to use while cutting a little fire wood recently.

Overview of the cutting process in pictures:

1) So this is the cheap (~$5.00 @ Wal-Mart) Wire/Commando Saw I used to test for my kit. Note the picture within the picture of how they show the saw put to use. Like I said above this is the most effective means of using the saw, but it is also the way in which this saw fails the most. This version works well for using as a bow saw and if it does fail you have some additional cordage you can put to work!

2) The webbing on either end make this saw extremely easy to assemble, all you have to do is cut two notches in the twig you are using and tie the two ends in that notch. If you need additional tension all you have to do is twist the webbing a little to keep your tension for the saw. You want to keep the saw as flat as possible during the cutting process (almost impossible to keep 100% straight but as close as you can). Notice there is very little deviation from a straight line while the saw is in motion.

3) Another saw in motion still showing the saws ability to keep the flat surface of the saw even with pressure from various angles.

4)  Nearly 3/4 of the way through the saw begins to show some signs of slack, at this point you would need to tighten the saw for further use to prevent the possibility of failure.

5) This saw was able to make easy work out of this smaller stick, however it would have been much easier and take less calories to simply break the stick between two trees growing together.

Conclusions:

This saw is not the albatross that many make it out to be. We were able to process fire wood for several hours without any issues so from a durability perspective this saw has my vote. From an efficiency perspective this saw is a failure in my book. A Bacho Laplander or an improvised bow saw will leave this thing in the "saw dust;" also the calories expended to cut materials mostly outweighed the gain as I could simply break the stick using another method. From a weight and size perspective this saw can't be beat! While a Bacho is my preference it simply will not fit in an Altoids tin, the same can be said of a bow saw blade. I definitely wouldn't  use this saw as the package demonstrates but it seems to work in an semi-effective manner as a bow saw.

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